Mantis
by Da God Cane
Summary: Do you know, mantis legends? How it was it all started? It was fighting off this blackbird... The technique, needs a brave man And a strong one, who isn't afraid of birds... Neji/Naru, companion fic to the Sakura/Hinata, Shaolin Finger Jab.


A/N: In case the summary wasn't enough, this is a companion to my Sakura/Hinata fic, Shaolin Finger Jab, both are in the same time, and the ending one-shot for the two will be known as Weak Spot. I just had to put some light Neji/Naru in here, so if yaoi of any measure is a problem with you, oh well. 

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, there wouldn't be a Shippuden cause I'd have kidnapped Naruto by the first episode for my own disgusting purposes. If I owned "Weak Spot" and "Mantis" by the Wu-Tang Clan, I'd be have many hoes...(tears up) it hurts cause I know I don't.

"Welcome back to the temple of hip-hop and sword kempo,

lyrical rhyme nympho B-Boy Bob Digital,

diamond crusted ring Solid gold bone rituals,

we be the humble most calmest individuals"

-RZA, (Mantis)

_Mantis_

"...Neji wait!..."

Naruto Uzumaki was not a particularly talented shinobi, his taijutsu was clumsy and mediocre at best, he had no aptitude for genjutsu (save for his Sexy Jutsu, but what use is a sex change technique in battle), and his ninjutsu, though decent, were fairly easy the see through and counter.

"8 Trigrams: Two palms!..."

"Dammit-aah!"

The diminutive genin wasn't that bright either, he had his moments, but when it came down to it, Naruto wasn't thinking or calculating at all, on any mission, battle or not, hard headed bravado and a do-or-die nindo were all he came with.

"...four palms!..."

"Neji-Aaah, dammit!"

Another the about Naruto's record as a leaf nin was that he had never killed anyone, a complete irony considering his profession. It's funny, for someone so thorough, he never made any effort to finish the job and kill the enemy.

"...sixteen palms!"

"Agh!"

Oddly enough, the demon vessel was able to identify and attempt to rectify one of these many flaws, and even better, he had the perfect person helping him out.

"Thirty two palms!..."

"Ah, ugh, ahhh!"

Although the person in question seemed to detest helping fix the very flaws he worked to never come across.

"...SIXTY, FOUR, PALMS!" bellowed Neji Hyuga, finishing his gentle fist combo with a final blow that blasted his opponent off his feet.

Once again for the fifth time that night, Neji walked towards a prone and starry-eyed Naruto Uzumaki, holding a hand out to help him up. The blonde rubbed the many of the sore spots on his chest and stomach with a grimace as the other shinobi stood in front of him with a bored look on his face. It was this look that reminded Naruto of the purpose of his training with the Hyuga. Several weeks ago, Naruto had taken a mission with him, Sakura, and Hinata, and the had came across a particularly fierce opponent who's taijutsu had surpassed that of their own, and only through the combined efforts of Neji and Hinata was he defeated. Upon their return to the village, Sakura proposed that she and Naruto see the young Byakugan wielders for help with their hand-to-hand combat skill.

And so began the daily visits the dojo in the Hyuga compound, the two of them had been at it for three days straight, and though Naruto seemed little worse for wear in terms of progress, neither of them was making any considerable headway in their training.

"Naruto, do you understand the flaw in your defense in the last round?" said Neji, watching the boy flex his fingers to get some of the feeling in his arm back.

He answered in a strained voice, "Yeah, you just royally beat my ass into ground without letting me think."

The pale eyed boy might have chuckled if he hadn't disciplined himself so thoroughly. "Oddly enough Naruto, that's it, but in a real battle do expect any opponent to give you time to think at all? You expect them to sit there twiddling their thumbs while you take half their lives to make up a counterattack?"

"No, but...I mean...no..."

"When we first fought," Neji continued, "I remember how you sent clone after clone at me, and no matter how many I tore through, I still couldn't find you. Yet you were able to predict my attack, and intentionally left one out of the fray. You didn't think past my rotation counter, and I won't fault you for that, but you were still able to see me coming before then. That kind on-the-go thinking is exactly the basis of the style I'm trying to teach you."

Naruto definitely remembered that, but the state of mind he was in that day was...

"Neji...I got it!"

The Hyuga quirked an eyebrow, "Are you serious? That quick? You're absoulutely sure you've got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it Neji now come on!" the blonde chimed exictedly.

Naruto stood up once more before Neji, brain at work, he was finally going beat Neji at his own game, in fact his feet moved before he knew it, and suddenly the ground was getting closer to his face before everything went black.

The Hyuga prodigy was not suprised, he was bound to pass out sooner or later, the constant closing and forced re-opening of tenketsu on a shinobi's body in short amounts of time was taxing on their stamina and keriakukei (chakra lines). Still, he had went five rounds, and plus it was well into the night now, so there was some measure of progression now. The problem now, was that he had a sleeping Naruto of the floor of the dojo, and it was late now so Neji had to turn in as well. But rather than leave him on the floor where he was, the Hyuga scooped the boy up in his arms, and took him upstairs to his room.

He set Naruto down beside his bed and draped a few blankets over him before slipping into his own covers and turning off the light.

Tomorrow, he would find out exactly how much Naruto "understood".  
-  
Heh. I like that, I think I'll hold it right here. Tomorrow I'll post Sholin FInger Jab. P-E-A-C-E!


End file.
